Top Rank: Antonio DeMarco returns on Jan. 11

Former WBC lightweight titleholder Antonio DeMarco will pursue his second consecutive stoppage victory in a junior welterweight bout on Jan. 11 against Mexican countryman Jesus Gurrola in Tijuana, Top Rank has announced.

A southpaw who turns 28 on Jan. 7, DeMarco (29-3-1, 22 knockouts) will be in his second straight 140-pound bout against Gurrola (20-5-3, 9 KOs), whose unanimous decision over Armando Robles in September helped him to rebound from a June's unanimous decision loss to Silverio Ortiz.

In his last fight in August, DeMarco twice dropped Fidel Monterossa Munoz on the way to a fifth-round knockout in his 140-pound debut, bouncing back from an eighth-round stoppage loss to AdrienBroner that dethroned him as WBC lightweight beltholder in November of 2012.

DeMarco had earned the vacant 135-pound belt with an 11th-round knockout of former two-division beltholder Jorge Linares in October of 2011 and scored two more stoppage wins in defense of it, includiing a 44-second knockout of John Molina in September of 2012.

The victory over Molina was DeMarco's fifth straight win since falling by ninth-round knockout to late Venezuelan Edwin Valero (27-0, 27 KOs) in February of 2010.